Bad Influence
by NATFreak
Summary: For my Jade Leopard on his TENTH birthday, I present this one-shot which takes place a few years ago and is from Iron Man himself's point of view as he relates how he met Rose's son, Henry and decided to take him for a night on the town. Lose. R&R.


Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men or Avengers. I do own Henry, Rose, and Lilly.

 **A/N: For my Jade Leopard on his TENTH birthday, I present this one-shot that is a little different from the ones I have done over the years for this one is from the point of view of Iron Man himself, Tony Stark, as he decides to try and take the young mutant under his wing. So without further ado, here goes. Enjoy and happy birthday, Hen!**

Nothing is more depressing than a beautiful woman with a ring on her finger and two little kids, one hanging onto her pant leg and the other cradled in what I viewed as an extremely favorable position.

"Seriously, how did a babe like you end up with a brute like him?" I asked the silver cheetah as she and her family strode into the Sanctum Sanctorum (I would have had it at Avengers Tower but Strange is Mr. Magic so we always have to have the Halloween party at his place). "Especially when you had a much better offer who, I might add, has perfect teeth and mountains of cash he would let you spend at your leisure. You could have been a queen."

Rose rolled her cat-like eyes. "I'd say I'm glad to see you, Stark, but then I'd be lying."

Her husband, the mighty wolverine, laughed as he bent down to take off their six year old son's coat who was staring at me with wide blue eyes.

"You're Iron Man," he breathed.

"The one and only," I confirmed with a grin. "What's your name, young man?"

"Henry," he replied. "My name's Henry."

"It's nice to meet you, Henry," I told him, holding out my hand which he shook as the rest of my team came out to greet Rose and her family.

"There she is!" exclaimed Black Widow as she practically bulled me over to get to her best friend and held out her arms. "Can I hold her?"

Rose smiled and passed her daughter over to the former spy who was usually a total badass but was now cooing over the giggling infant girl.

"Everyone loves Lilly," murmured Henry, dejectedly.

"Why don't we go somewhere and have some fun, just the two of us?" I suggested, my sympathy for the young mutant getting the better of me.

Henry's face brightened instantly. "Really?"

I nodded. "All we got to do is sneak out of here and I'll take you around town in my incredible Iron Man suit, what do you say?"

Henry glanced at his parents for a moment before turning back to me. "Let's go."

~ Bad Influence ~

"This is so cool!" shouted Henry as I flew over the city while holding him in my arms. "I've never been this high up before!"

"Easy, kid," I urged him as he strained forward. "Don't move around too much. I don't want to drop you." Your mother would kill me if I did. "Stay put, okay?"

"Okay, Mr. Stark," he replied, leaning back obediently. "Hey, do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" I inquired, glancing down at him curiously.

"It sounds like someone's crying for help," he said.

"My scanners haven't picked up anything," I murmured. "Are you sure, kid?"

"Mhm," he affirmed with a hard nod as he pointed down and away from the busy streets to a dark alleyway. "Right over there. It sounds like a lady."

"No offense, little dude, but I think you're hearing things," I told him. "Besides we should probably be getting back to your mom or she'll have my head."

"I really hear something though," Henry insisted. "I do, Mr. Stark."

"Sorry, kid," I began as I started to turn around and head to Strange's Magic Palace when FRIDAY suddenly informed me of a robbery was in progress. The location? The alleyway Henry had gestured to. "Well what do ya know?"

"What?" asked Henry, staring up at me.

"You were right, kid, someone is in trouble," I informed him. "We're going to go help them and by we, I mean you're going to watch me be awesome as I save the day."

~ Bad Influence ~

"Alright, lady, you know the drill," grunted a thug who reeked of cheap alcohol as he aimed a gun at a pretty blond lady's terrified face. "Give me all your cash and I'll let you go."

"I have a better idea," I declared, landing behind him with my arms crossed while Hen watched from his perch on the fire escape above us. "You drop the gun and turn yourself into the authorities willingly and I won't beat you up in front of this nice young girl here who clearly just wants to go about her way."

The guy jumped out of his skin and spun around to face me. "Iron Man!"

"That's my name, don't wear it out," I replied with a smirk. "So you gonna release the piece or are we going to have to do this the hard way?"

"Sure thing, man," the thug yelped, laying the gun down on the dirty ground and raising his hands up in surrender. "I wasn't really going to hurt her."

Yeah, right. That's what they all say, I thought before turning my gaze to my lovely maiden in distress. "You can run along now, miss. He won't be bothering you anymore."

"Thank you so much," she gushed then turned and sprinted out of the alleyway. The police arrived soon after and took the scum away.

"So what did you think, Hen?" I asked the future X-Man, looking up at him. "Pretty cool, right?"

"The coolest!" He confirmed with a broad grin that lit up his speckled face. "That was so awesome, Mr. Stark!"

"It's what I do, kid. It's what I do."

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" demanded an angry yet still enchanting voice I would have recognized anywhere.

I flinched and revolved around to see Rose standing in the entrance of the alleyway. The silver cheetah was physically fuming so much that I knew if I came into contact with her, she would make my suit and body shake violently with vibrations.

"Hey there, Rose," I greeted her in what I hoped was my usual calming, charismatic tone. "Fancy meeting a stunning woman like you in a place like this."

Rose's cat-like eyes glinted, cutting me off instantly. "Before I kill you, why don't you tell me why you thought it was a good idea to take my child without my permission and sneak him out of Strange's sanctum and bring him to a dangerous place like this? And why is he up there?"

"I wanted him to have a good view of me in action because who wouldn't want to see the mighty Iron Man cleaning up the city," I replied. "Plus I felt bad for the little guy. He was feeling left out back there since everyone was paying attention to his baby sister and not him."

Rose's expression softened slightly but I could tell she was not going to budge. "You still should have asked me first. Do you know how worried I was? I wouldn't have found you two so quickly if the police hadn't announced you were on the scene. For God's sake, Tony, he's only a child who should not be in a germ infested, crime ridden place like this! He also should not be high up on a disgusting fire escape! Get him down, now!"

I bowed my head in acquiescence and did as she ordered. I picked up Hen and flew him down to his mom who took him in her arms. "Sorry, kid, guess the show's over."

"That's okay, Mr. Stark," Henry reassured me. "It was fun."

I grinned. "You know what, kid? I like you."

~ Bad Influence ~

"Still alive, huh?" noted Wolverine as we reentered Strange's Sanctorum.

"It would appear so," I agreed.

"He's lucky Hen was there," Rose remarked simply as she passed Henry to his father who hugged him tightly. The silver cheetah then glanced at Strange with a knowing smile on her lips. "Ready to reveal the big surprise, Doctor Strange?"

Strange nodded before making a motion with his hands that caused a mountain of candy and toys to appear in front of Henry and his parents. "There you are, young one. Happy Halloween."

"Whoa," whispered Henry. His eyes were the size of dinner plates as he stared at his mom. "Is this really all for me?"

Rose smiled. "Yes, sweetheart, but you can only have a little bit at a time, alright?"

"What about Lilly?" he inquired.

"She's too young to have candy yet," she explained.

"Oh, okay," murmured Henry before asking Logan to set him down. The young mutant then grabbed an over-sized lollipop and walked over to me. "Here you go, Mr. Stark."

"You sure?" I asked. The little guy nodded. I could honestly say I felt truly touched by the gesture as I accepted the lollipop. I then reached into my pocket and took out an Avengers communicator. "Here, buddy, take this. If you ever need me, or just want to talk, push this button and I'll be there."

Henry grinned as I placed the device in his hands. "I will! Thanks, Mr. Stark!"

"Call me Tony."

 **A/N: And there you have it! A sweet little one-shot. Happy birthday, Henry! I can't believe you're TEN already! I love you so much and look forward to writing more stories with you! Til next time, read review and show the love!**


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